American cyclist Clara Honsinger runs up the staircase during the UCI Cyclocross World Cup race at Centennial Park in Fayetteville on Oct. 13, 2021. (Flyer file photo/Todd Gill)World-class cyclocross racing will return to Fayetteville this weekend.
The OZCX and UCI Cyclocross World Cup events are set for Oct. 14-16 at Centennial Park, which includes three days bike racing atop Millsap Mountain in southwest Fayetteville.
General admission is free, but tickets are required. VIP passes are also available for access to the finish line area.
Junior, C1-level and amateur events are scheduled on Friday and Saturday, including kids races and team relays. Sunday’s races begin with junior girls and boys categories, and the main events will feature the UCI pro women’s race at 12:30 p.m. and the UCI pro men’s race at 2 p.m.
The Fayetteville race is one of only two pro cyclocross World Cup events planned in the United States this year, along with Waterloo, Wisconsin.
It will be the second time Fayetteville has hosted a World Cup. Last year’s event was not well attended due it being held on a Wednesday instead of the typical Sunday afternoon time slot. Those races were also held during a two-day stretch of steady rain, which left the riders completely drenched in mud.
Centennial park was also the site of the UCI Cyclo-Cross World Championships in January, which drew an estimated crowd of over 14,000 people over the three-day event. Many of the same riders are expected to return to Fayetteville for the World Cup races.
